Banoffee Pie with Salted Shortbread Crust

Banoffee pie is a banana and toffee pie, with a crushed biscuit base that originates from England. The first time I tried it was at a restaurant in Gozo, an island in Malta. I was travelling with a friend who typically does not enjoy desserts or have much of a sweet tooth at all, but we had a version of this pie that was salty and sweet, and we went back to the restaurant every single night we were there to treat ourselves. Her birthday rolled around, and I figured I would try my best to re-create the pie of our dreams and it turned out to be pretty damn close to the one we had. To make the whipped cream stay in soft pillow like dollops, I added melted marshmallows to the whipped cream so that it would stabilize and not lose its form over time.

For the Stabilized Whipped Creamed

*The marshmallows must be fresh, or else they will not melt/combine properly with the whipped cream

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Using a wooden spoon or the paddle attachment on an electric stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar “for the salted shortbread crust”. Add in vanilla and salt, and stir to combine. In a separate bowl, sift together flour and baking soda, and add to the creamed butter mixture. Stir until well combined. Press crust into two 9 inch tart pants (pie dishes or spring form cake pans will also work). Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside.

Melt the butter “for the filling” over low heat in a large non-stick saucepan. Add in brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Pour in condensed milk and bring to a rapid boil for 1 minute, stirring continuously until a golden brown caramel colour is achieved. Spread the toffee evenly between the two pies, and chill in the fridge for 1 hour or until firm.

To make the stabilized whipped cream, start by using a cold bowl and beaters. I put my metal bowl and beaters in the freezer beforehand for 15 minutes. Whip the cream with an electric beater over high speed until the beaters just begin to leave a mark in the cream. At this point, add in the sugar, and beat until just combined. Take the jumbo marshmallows and microwave until just melted. Stir them, and then add the marshmallow fluff to the whipped cream. Beat the whipped cream mixture until stiff peaks form.

To assemble the pies, evenly divide the banana slices on top of the set toffee base. Either dollop the stabilized whipped cream on top, or pipe it through a large piping bag (or a plastic bag with the corner cut off). I like mountains of whipped cream with my pie, as the photos will prove. Garnish with grated milk chocolate or milk chocolate curls.

Using stabilized whipped cream will keep holding its shape for up to 3 days!